THE TOWN OF GREENBURGH. 319 



vicinity of the present poor-house,) where the captors took break- 

 fast. The party again resumed their march, and within a short time 

 arrived at North Castle. Here they delivered up their prisoner to Jame- 

 son, with all the papers that had been taken from his stockings. a The 

 prisoner was confined here in a small cottage, at present attached to the 

 barn of Mr. Sands. Further details concerning the spy will be found in 

 the respective towns, b 



Upon the delivery of their prisoner, the seven patriots returned to 

 their different quarters, little imagining the importance of their prize. A 

 little more than a month afterwards, (General Washington having re- 

 commended the captors to Congress,) they received the following vote of 

 thanks from that body : 



In Congress, November, 3, 1780. 



Whereas, Congress have received information that John Paulding, David Wil- 

 liams and Isaac van Wart, three young volunteer militia men of the State of 

 New York, did, on the 23d day of September last, intercept Major John Andre, 

 adjutant general of the British army, on his return from the American line in 

 the character of a spy; and notwithstanding the large bribes offered them for his 

 release, nobly disdaining to sacrifice their country for the sake of gold, secured 

 and conveyed him to the commanding officer of the district, whereby the danger- 

 ous and traitorous conspiracy of Benedict Arnold was brought to bight, the in- 

 sidious designs of the enemy baffled, and the United States rescued from impend- 

 ing danger : 



Resolved, That Congress have a high sense of the virtuous and patriotic con- 

 duct of the said John Paulding, David Williams and Isaac van Wart. In tes- 

 timony whereof, Ordered, that each of them receive anuually out of the public 

 treasury two hundred dollars in specie, or an equivalent in current money of 

 these States, during life, and that the board of war procure for each of them a 



after they had left, one returned and said, ' Aunt Polly, can you keep a secret for an hour ? ' 

 She thought she could. He then replied, ' We have a spy ; but don't mention it to any one for 

 an hour, and then we shall be safe away.' As soon as they were gone, she felt an intense 

 longing just to tell Mrs. Col. Hammond, living about a mile away. So she hurried about, 

 caught the old horse, and gave him a feed of oats, to consume the time ; and then thought 

 that by the time she was dressed, the hour would would have expired. But long before it 

 had, she was ready ; and, mounting on the old horse, with a large poke bonnet, went flying to 

 Col. Hammond's. Mrs. Hammond saw her coming, and ran to inquire the cause. She 

 replied by taking off her bonnet and waving it around her head, crying : ' Hurrah ! hurrah ! ' 

 ' What, for God's sake, is the matter ? ' asked Mrs. Hammond. ' Hurrah ! They have taken a 



spy ! ' At which she dismounted ; and the two old ladies, taking each other's hands, 



danced for joy around the old horse. This attracted the attention of a neighboring tory who 

 was passing, and he asked what it meant? They replied a spy had been captured. This 

 was very rash, as the party were not more than 2 or 3 miles away at the time, on their journey 

 to^Col. Jameson's head-quarters, at North Castle. But Aunt Polly's curiosity got the better 

 of her judgement." 



a K is a curious fact mentioned by Sparks in his Biography of Arnold, that the last canto of 

 Andre's humorous satire, called the " Cow-chase," was printed on the very day of his cap- 

 ture. It will be found in Rivington's Royal Gazette, for Sept. 23d, 1780. It ends with the fol- 

 lowing stanza : 



" And now I've closed my epic strain, 

 I tremble as I show it, 

 Lest this same warrior-drover, Wayne, 

 Should ever catch the poet." 



—[Sparks' Biog. Arnold, 228. 



6 See North Castle, S. Salem. 



